16 July 2014

Fact-finding trip a huge success

The UK has much to learn from our continental neighbours when it comes to tripe, Tripe Marketing Board chairman Sir Norman Wrassle told fellow board members at a meeting in Preston yesterday.

Tripe on sale at Valencia's Mercat Central

Sir Norman was commenting after the return of a TMB fact-finding delegation to Valencia as the guests of Spanish Tripe. Among the highlights of the trip were visits to city abattoirs and the main Mercat Central, where Sir Norman chatted informally with tripe retailers and consumers.

Staff from the TMB communications department also visited the studios of the Nou Televisió channel, where ideas were discussed for a new programme - Toallao Callos - in which contestants would be asked to distinguish between towels and tripe to win prizes.

Sir Norman said: "The Spanish are altogether more relaxed about tripe. It's more widely available and doesn't seem to inspire the same feelings of revulsion that it does here in the UK. At worst, people in Spain are only slightly nauseated by it."